Pipe cleaning apparatus



July 25, 1939. R. T. QUICK 2,167,087

PIPE CLEANING APPARATUS Filed July 3l, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 TAM INVENTOR. 05/ @alb/e7 ATTORNEY.

July' 25, 1939. R. T. QUICK 2,167,087

PIPE CLEANING APARATUS IFiled July 51, 1937 2 sheets-sheet 2 A *115 50 4505/1 a, *4 5- 4z 4Z l A 40 INVENTOR. @0 7 r arq/a.)

ATTORNEY.

Patented July 25, 1939 PIPE CLEANING APPARATUS Roy T. Quick, Los Angeles, Calif., assigner to George H. Werfelman, Los Angeles, Calif.

Application July 31, 1937, Serial No. 156,686

(ci. 24a-54)' 8 Claims.

My invention relates broadly to apparatus for cleaning pipes of all kinds, and particularly to the cleaning of sewers, drain pipes and the like, which have become stopped up or clogged with solid matter.

It is the major object of my invention to provide a simple and durable apparatus for cleaning pipes which is extremely efcient and capable of operating successfully on all kinds of stoppages in all kinds of pipe.

"The apparatus of my invention is generally of .the type shown in the U. S. patent to Magruder, No. 2,075,215, and is particularly directed to providing an improved reel and wire-holding apparatus in the revolving carriage type of machine shown in that patent.

A preferred form of my apparatus is illustrated in the attached drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective of the complete apparatus,

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same,

Fig. 3 is a side elevation partly in section of the main working parts thereof,

Fig. 4 is a fragmentaryl section taken at line 25 4--4 of Fig. 3, y

Fig. 5 is fragmentary section Fig. 4, and

Fig. 6 is a detail section of a guide roller assembly taken at 6-6 in Fig. 3.

Referring now t'o the drawings and particularly to Fig. 1 thereof, the numeral II) indicates generally a main frame which if desired maybe provided with wheels II. rI'he frame I I) may be of any suitable construction but I prefer that it 35 shall comprise a bed or base vplate I3, uprights or posts I4, longitudinal horizontal members I5, and cross-members or end plates I6 and Ilia. An additional supporting member or cross-bar I2 extends across the frame adjacent the end plate I6 and is provided with a bearing II, a corresponding bearing Ila being provided in end plate Ilia.

A reel carriage indicated generally by the numeral I9, preferably comprising a pair of head plates 29 and 20a and four longitudinallyextending rods 2| secured between the head plates is revolubly mounted in the frame I0 by means -of a p air of trunnions I8 and I8a extending from head plates 29 and 20a respectively and journalled in the bearings II and I'Ia. A wiretaken at 5 5 in holding reel 22 is rotatably mounted within thev carriage I9 in any convenient manner, such as shaft 23 extending between a pair of side plates or brackets 24 and 24a, fastened between vertically opposed pairs of the longitudinal rods 2|.

By this construction the carriage I9 is adapted to revolve about the axis of trunnions I8 in frame Il), and reel 22 is adapted to rotate about its normal axis 23 in carriage I9.

A coil of wire 25 is' wound on the reel 22 and its free end 25a is led outside of the carriage I9 and frame Ill in any convenient manner but preferably on the axis of trunnions I8 and I8a. This is most ,easily accomplished-.by making one of the trunnions hollow or tubular and in the form shown in the drawings, trunnion I8 is so constructed. A pipe cleaning tool of any suitable type is fastened on the free end 25a of the wire, and it will be seen that rotation of the reel'22 in its carriage I9 will advance or retract the wire ,and tool, while revolution of the carriage I9 and reel 22 about the trunnion axis of the carriage will cause the wire and tool to rotate about their longitudinal axis.

In the ordinary operation of my device, it is highly desirable that the revolution of the carriage I9 and the rotation of the reel 22 be indepently controlled so that these movements may b e had simultaneously or separately and at lndependently variable speeds. Any suitable means for accomplishing this result may be employed, one very simple and eiiicient means being illustrated in the drawings as seen best from an inspection of Figs. 2 and 3. In this form of my device, the trunnion I8 is provided with a pulleyA 26 adapted to bel driven by a belt 30 connected to any suitable source of power such as a motor 3| mounted on the bed plate I3. Any suitable means (not shown) may be employed for varying and controlling the'speed of pulley 26 and hence trunnion I8 and carriage I9.

To rotate the reel 22, a hollow shaft 33 may be rotatably mounted in tubular trunnion I8 and extend through and beyond each end thereof. On the outer end of shaft 33, I provide suitable driving means such as a variable radius pulley 32 which is normally held at its maximum diameter by suitable spring means 34 adapted to bear on the shoulder 35 of the pulley and also don nut 29 on the outer end of theshaft 33. A gear 36 is keyed on the inner end 'of shaft 33 just inside of carriage head plate 20 land engages a gear 31 carried by a horizontal shaft 38 suitably journalled in the carriage I9. The other end of shaft 38 carries a beveled pinion 39 adapted to mesh with a beveled ring gear 40 fastened to the reel 22. It will thus be seen that rotation of pulley. 32, as for instance, by` a belt 51, rotates hollow shaft 33 and gear 36, which drives gear 31 and shaft 38 to rotate beveled gears 39 and Aus 43 and thus rotate reel 22 on its normal axis 23. The pulley 32 may be driven by any suitable means such as a drive pulley (not shown) on the shaft of motor 3l, or may be driven independently, the principal requirement being that its speed be variable with respect to the speed of pulley 26 and trunnion I3. While I have shown and described the shaft 33 as being hollow to accommodate the wire 26, it will of course be understood that trunnion i3d may be made tubular to provide an axial passage for the wire, and in that case shaft 33 is preferably made solid.

As will be obvious to those skilled in the art, high speed rotation of the reel 22 tends to throw the wire 25 outwardly from the reel rim, and it will be found whenever the pipe cleaning tool is working on an obstruction that the wire 25 will tend to rise oi of the reel 22. It thus becomes imperative to provide adequate means for holding the Wire'25 tightly on the reel 22 at all times', and to also provide a simple and eilicient means for winding and unwinding the wire at will, both when the carriage I3 is at rest and when it is revolving.

Referring now particularly to Figs. 4 and 5 it will be seen that the reel 22 comprises a hub 4I, spokes 42 and a rim 43 adapted to receive the wire 25. My preferred means for holding the wire on the reel at all times is as follows. Brackets 45 and 45a, preferably circular in shape are mounted on each side of. the reel`carriage I9 by any suitable means, and withtheir center on the axis 23 of the reel 22. A plurality of outwardly-extending radial guide members 50 and 50a are secured to the brackets 45 and 45a respectively,

. the guides being arranged in pairs so that a guide 50 is always opposite to a guide 50a on the other side of the reel 22. 'I'he guides are preferably provided with radial slots I as seen best in Fig. 5 and rollers 52 are mounted in the opposed slots of oppositely disposed guides 5 0. Suitable spring' means such as the helical springs 53 and 53a are respectively connected between the outer ends of the roller shafts 54 and the circular 'brackets 45 and 45a, to continually pull the rollers 52 inwardly and radially toward the reel rim 43. As will be seen, the slots 5I are so proportioned that the rollers 52 will at all times bear against theV wire 25 on rim 43, regardless of how much or.little wire may be on the reel at the moment, and by forming the springs 53 of suitable sizeand strength avery considerable pressure can be applied to the wire 25 by means of rollers 52.

The rim 43 may be formed with annular sides between the rim 43 and the guides 50 and 50a,

thus preventing the wire 25 ,from slipping ofi the rim, even when a considerable amount has been wound thereon. If., as is the case under some conditions, it is necessary'to cut down the friction drag between the guides 50 and the rim 43 and wire 25, I provide a series of radial guide rollers 60, preferably mounted on laterally extending' ears carried by the guides 50 as seen best in Fig. 5. In this case the rim 43 preferably does not touch the guides 50 but does engage the plurality of radial rollers 60, so that the wire 25 is at all timesheld against lateral movement away from the rim. l

It will be understood of course -that vthe brackets or frames 45 45a and the guides 56 50a may be formed as solid housings with suitably disposed bearings for the spring-pressed rollers 52 and the guide rollers 60 if they be used. However, the form of my invention illustrated herein is deemed'to be the most economical of construction, eiiicient in operation, and accessible for plate 63 is provided with a plurality of guide rollers 64 preferably having grooved or concave circumferential faces to accommodate and guide the wire 25 from the reel 22 to the hollow shaft 33. To adjust the angular position of the roller plate 63 and to reinforce it, I provide an angularly extending bracket 65 which alsov may be mounted on the cross-brace 62 and parallels the plate 63. and bracket 65 are preferablyjoined by a bolt 66 provided with a lock nut 61 to permit the space between the backet and the plate to be varied. The plate 63 may be made semi-flexible or may be pivotally mounted so as to facilitate adjustment. Likewise, it can be curved to conform to the natural path of the wire 25 ifA desired. I

The operation of my preferred form of apparatus illustrated herein, is as follows:

A cleaning tool of suitable form is fastened to( the free end of the wire 25 extending beyond the The outer or free ends of the plate 63 machine, the power source is energized, and by reason of belts 36 and 51 the pulleys 26 and 32 are caused to rotate. The pulley 26 keyed to trunnion i3 causesthe reel carriage I3 to revolve, and the pulley 32 causes rotation of shaft 33 and gear 36 about the axis of trunnion I6. As

long as the speeds of rotation of the two pulleys 26 and 32 are the same, there will be no relative.

motion of the gear 36 with respect to either the trunnion lI3 or the gear 31 carried by shaft 33 in the reel carriage I9. If it is desired to pay out the wire -and feed it into a pipe to be cleaned, the speed ofthe pulley 32 is increased by placing increased tension on the belt 51 by any convenient means such as an, idler pulley 63 which causes the adjustable sheave to spread out against the force of spring 34 thus reducing the diameter of the pulley 32 and decreasing the ratio between'it and the driving pulley on the motor shaft. This increase in speed of pulley 32 and its attached gear 36 causes the gear 31 to rotate, lwhich in turn causes the reel 22 to rotate about its normal axis 23 to pay out the wire 25 which passes under guide rollers 64 and through hollow shaft 33 to the pipe being cleaned. Alternative means for placing tension on the belt is to provide avariable sheave pulley on the drive shaft also and to vary its diameter manually to vary the belt tension and hence the speed of pulley 32.

When it is desired to withdraw the wire 25 from the pipebeing cleaned and rewind it on reel 22, the speed of pulley 32 is decreased below the speed of the trunnion pulley 26 and relative motion of gear 31 is eiected in an opposite direction, causing the reel 22 to again rotate on its axis 23 but in a reverse direction.

If it is also desired to vary the speed of the carriage I9, this can be done in several convenient ways such for example, as providing a rheostat on the motor to control its speed, by using a variable sheave pulley at 26 with an idler pulley such as 53, or by other suitable means. Likewise, if it is desired to rotate the reel 22 to feed the wire 25 without rotating the carriage and wire, suitable clutch means may be provided for entirely disconnecting pulley 26 from trunnion I8 at will, or separate power sources may be used.

As will be evident from the foregoing, no matter what type of driving" means is used in my apparatus, relative high speeds are desirable and consequently it is essential to provide adequate means for rmly holding the wire 25 on the reel at all times and still allowing it to be wound or unwound thereon at high speeds. By mounting the series of spring-pressed rollers 52 on the carriage, I do away with the necessity of moving parts which have to open and close once during each rotation of the reel and by so doing I achieve a simplicity of construction and longer life for my apparatus. Furthermore, the wire 25 isposltively lheld on the rim at all times irrespective of how iull'the reel is or how fast it is moving.

It will be evident, o1' course, that the wire-holding means herein described can be used in connection with a reel mounted in a stationary carriage as for instance the type used in pushing wires or cables through conduits where it is not necessary to rotate the wire on its longitudinal axis.

While the embodiment of my inv'ention shown herein is Vfully capable of attaining the objects and providing the advantages stated, it is to be understood that it is merely illustrative of the true scope of my invention as dened by the appended claims.

' I claim as my invention:

1. In pipe cleaning apparatus the combination of: a frame; a carriage revolubly mountedinA said frame; a wire receivingreel rotatably mount-V ed in said carriage with its axis of rotationsubstantially at right angles to that of said carriage; a plurality of transverse rollers mounted on said carriage adapted to press said wire on the rim of A said reel; a plurality of radial rollers also mounted on said` carriage adapted -to hold saidt wirer from lateral movement; and means for revolving said carriage and independently rotating said passage; a reel with a coil of wire thereon rotatably mounted in said carriage with its axis of rotation substantially at right angles to that of said carriage; means for`. revolving said carriage and rotating said reel therein irrespective of the revolution of said carriage; a pair of brackets, one on each side ot said carriage; a plurality of outwardly-extending radial guides mounted on each of said brackets the guides on said brackets being arranged opposite oe another; a roller .mounted in each of said pairs of opposed guides.

said rollers being adjacent the rim of said reel; and spring means on said carriage for urging said rollers into contact with saidv coil of wire.

5. Apparatus as dened in claim 4 in which a plate carrying rollers adapted to guide said wire from said reel to said-tubular passage is mounted on said carriage.

6. Apparatus as defined in claim 4 in which said radial guides are provided with radial rollers adapted to prevent said coil of wire frommoving laterally oi! of said reel. f

'1. In pipe cleaning apparatus the combination of: a trame; a carriage revolubly mounted in said frame; a wire receiving reel rotatably mounted in said carriage with its axis of rotationY substantially at right angles to that of said carriage; means for independently revolving said carriage and rotating said reel therein; guide means on each side of said carriage adjacent the rim of said reel providing a plurality of opposed radial slots; a transverse roller mounted in each pair of slots adjacent the rim of said reel; and spring means on said carriage for urging said rollers into contact with wire on said rim to hold the same firmly in position thereon.

8. Apparatus as dened in claim 7 in which said guide means is provided with a plurality of radial rollers adapted to hold said wire from lateral movement.

ROY T. QUICK. 

